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Ground Power Connection

backcountry

Well Known Member
Have anyone come up with a good way to connect ground power to the aircraft?
I like to run the avionics quite often to keep familiar with the procedures and I don't like to pull the top cowl each time. Presently I open the oil dip stick door and connect to the + battery terminal. That works but I bet someone has come up with something better.
 
I use a 4-pin circular connector from Cole-Hersee. It's mounted inside the oil dip stick door, attached to the engine mount with an MS21919-DG clamp. I've wired two pins to battery (-) and two pins to battery (+) via an in-line fuse, using 18ga wire. The contacts in this connector are brass and quite heavy-duty so I have had no trouble passing full battery charging current through it and running our entire aircraft.

Buy a spare matching 4-pin plug and wire it up with decent-sized alligator clips. Keep it in your fly-away kit so you can easily recharge your battery while away from home.

https://www.allbatterysalesandservice.com/browse.cfm/4,2697.html
 
Just put a cigarette lighter plug on the end of the small battery charger and plug it into your plane. That power supply runs direct to the battery.

I do it that way when I need to.

Brad Stiefvater
Salem sd
 
I?ve been thinking about installing a terminal somewhere in case I ever need a jump. I was thinking about something on the avionics bay deck under the panel on the passenger side, but I haven?t quite figured out exactly what it would like.

I favor something inside the cockpit so I could use it without ground assistance. Those small Li battery jump packs make it a viable option in a pinch on a X-country.
 
Why not stick with the standard SAE 2-pin plug as used by most every battery charger/conditioner? I add a bulkhead surface mount version to every aircraft in an easily accessible area, usually externally. On an RV-8 I like one inside the forward baggage area on the aft side of the firewall. On tube and fabric aircraft I like to install one on a belly fabric inspection panel. These bulkhead versions have a tethered protective cap to protect from weather.

Sticking with the standard there are no special home-brew plugs interfaces. Works with any charger with the standard plug pigtail. Plenty good for avionics power as referenced in original post. Compatible with everyone's charger home or on the road.

http://www.solarcapitalist.com/sae2pin-surface-panel-bulkhead-mount.aspx

When camping with my Husky I can attach a solar charger or use the socket plug to run an air mattress pump or charge a cell phone.

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Jim
 
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Just put a cigarette lighter plug on the end of the small battery charger and plug it into your plane. That power supply runs direct to the battery.

I do it that way when I need to.

Brad Stiefvater
Salem sd

Two points:

1. In the original design there is a fuse in that circuit, so one has to be sure the charging current will be limited, either by using a small trickle charger, or making sure the batttery is not discharged to any great extent when you plug it in.

2. If I recall correctly somewhere along the line the design of the power plug circuit was changed so the connection to the battery is not direct, but through the solenoid so it is not always hot.
 
Cessna plug.

Just make a bracket to bolt onto the engine mount just behind the oil filler hole. mount the PMA Cessna type plug there and take the ground to the engine or motor mount. Then the positive to the battery side of the master relay. You just open the hatch and plug in. If you work at making the location aft of and at a down angle of the oil filler hole this plug will not be in your way for any needed arm reaching into the engine compartment. Just what we do and it works very well so for, far hangar flying and topping off the battery from time to time as well as that jump you will need some day after you leave the master on over night or longer as with a weak battery as well.
Yours, R.E.A. III # 80888
 
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I used an Anderson Powerpole connector - available from your favorite ham radio supplier:

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A lightweight adapter cable will be carried in the aircraft to allow connection to whatever DC power source happens to be available. Note that this is designed only to allow charging the battery or powering the aircraft on the ground, not for jump-starting.
 
I had a hard time finding the Anderson Powerpole until someone suggested a Radio Control Model shop. Bingo! They also had the crimper, heavy wire, and assembled the whole thing for me.
 
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